


Love Lies

by EmilyBea



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-10
Updated: 2018-11-10
Packaged: 2019-08-21 19:18:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16582484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmilyBea/pseuds/EmilyBea
Summary: CS AU oneshot where Emma and Killian have been friends since college where they immediately friend-zoned each other. Years later they give into the attraction and have a crazy hot, totally amazing night together. This fic picks up in the aftermath of that shift. Also ties in with prompts I have had for more librarian!Emma stories.





	Love Lies

_Headstrong. Unshakeable. Steady._

These were three words that everyone always used to describe Emma Swan. She was used to it by now. Her mostly-even temper had gotten her far in life, given the tough start she’d had to it, and she’d always had a way of compartmentalizing the different bits and pieces of her world. The truth was, Emma hated when things got messy, because messiness for her signaled that there was room to get hurt. Because of that, Emma always stuck to a plan and a purpose. At least until last night…

The thought of how her evening turned out after what should have been a run of the mill outing with her friends made Emma shiver. Her vision flooded with images and memories of last night. They were all of the same thing: her and Killian fully forgetting their friend-zone status and throwing caution to the wind for what had to be hands down the hottest night of her life. She was burning up just thinking about it, remembering the feel of his hands on her skin and the way his eyes had gone from their normal color to a molten cerulean blue that made her dizzy. In the span of a few seconds her whole world had flipped and after years of holding back, Emma was addicted. She’d lost herself so completely, giving over all control and rational thought in the pursuit of one perfect moment with a man she adored and it was… everything. 

Even thinking of it now made her legs clench beneath the desk here at her office. She was in a completely ordinary and absolutely unsexy setting, but that fire from last night had yet to be put out. She still felt so much, a warmth, a rush. It was too much but also not enough, and Emma was frazzled by the onslaught. The roar in her ears and the hum of her blood was undeniable. Try as she might, she couldn’t get it to quit. 

“God, why did I have to sleep with him?”

Emma asked the words aloud, for her office was private and she knew no one would overhear with the door closed as it was. Not that it really mattered. Emma was certain that she was wearing the effects of last night all over her face. How could people not tell that the man she’d been lusting after since they met back in college had finally had his wicked way with her? She felt completely and utterly changed by the experience, and she certainly didn’t live up to any of her usual labels today.

Two hours had past since she walked into the doors of the Boston Public Library Jamaica Plain branch, and in that time Emma had accomplished nothing. It had been one hundred and twenty three minutes of complete distraction. She hadn’t even managed to have her usual talk with her best friend at work, Belle, today because she was worried her favorite colleague would know the truth, and what would Emma possibly say? She didn’t know how she felt, and friends always wanted to talk about feelings. For Emma this was so complicated. She loved Killian – she had loved him and been _in_ love with him for years now – but she always kept that secret under wraps. Even at the most trying moments, like those couple of times he answered the door in just a towel after racing from the shower, or the few fundraising functions he’d invited her to be his plus one at where he had to wear a tux, Emma had always stayed strong. She could imagine what it would be like, but she never gave in. Never…

A knock sounded at her office door and the soft noise sounded like thunder given how quiet the space was. It made Emma lurch in her seat. Her heart felt like it might spring right out of her chest, and she barely recognized the squeak in her voice when she told whoever it was to come in. Not two seconds later Belle was inside, and the look on her friend’s face told Emma everything. Belle knew. She so totally knew.

“Emma.” 

That was it. Her friend just said her name and Emma felt tears threatening to spill. She was not a crier, and she would not cry right now either, but it was close. She knew Belle could see it too, because when she met her friend’s gaze there was an extra layer of compassion there that just made Emma’s heart hurt more. Right now that wasn’t what she wanted. She wanted to hide, and this was the opposite of hiding.

“Don’t, Belle. Please, can we just not talk about it?”

“So there _is_ something to talk about,” Belle said and Emma groaned as she put her head in her hands. What was the point of beating around the bush at this rate? It was going to come out soon enough. That’s what happened when you ruined everything by being too afraid to take what you really wanted.

“I slept with Killian.”

“Oh thank God.” Emma’s head snapped up to look at Belle and her friend sat down in the seat across for her looking very relaxed. “Sorry, I just thought it was like an emergency.” 

“An emergency? Belle, this is an emergency! I’ve ruined everything!”

“Emma, you know that isn’t true,” Belle said with a sigh before filling the space that Emma kept silent. “Killian and you… this has been bound to happen for a long _long_ time. In all the years I have known you, you’ve been in love with him, and he’s been in love with you.” 

“That’s not true,” Emma whispered and Belle’s face became stern, a foreign expression for Emma’s usually mild mannered friend. 

“Are you trying to tell me you’re not in love with Killian?”

“No,” Emma replied immediately. “But he’s not in love with me. There’s no way. He’s too…”

“Absolutely enamored with you? Completely head over heels? Dying for you to take it to the next level?”

“What?” Emma sputtered out the word, not ready for this kind of reaction from Belle.

“Emma, Killian is in love with you! I know you have walls, and I know you’ve been burned before, you both have. But honey, you have to see what’s staring you in the face. You two are best friends, yes, but there’s a lot more there than friendly feelings nestled in between you two. This is love. Real, honest, storybook true love. Don’t run from that.”

“It’s too late,” Emma said, her throat clogging with emotion. “I already did run. I left this morning, and he…” 

It was hard to get the words out. She had left as soon as she awoke this morning and Killian hadn’t come after her. Maybe it was wrong to expect that he should, but Emma was scared and part of her hoped that he would be that man who came and made her see that there was more to this than a one night fling. Deep down she was hoping he would fight for her and for their future. She wanted a sign he wouldn’t let her go and that if she was worried, he’d be strong for both of them. Was that so terrible? Suddenly Emma realized that it was. She shouldn’t be putting that kind of expectation on Killian. Why was it his responsibility to set the pace? _She_ could be the brave one – _she_ could tell him exactly how much he meant to her and how much he always had.

“It’s never too late, Emma. You can make this right.”

“I can,” Emma said, her voice more confident than it had been before. She stood from her desk and grabbed her things. “Can you cover for me the rest of the day?” 

“Of course, I can. Go get him, Emma.”

Emma rushed out with the last bit of encouragement from her friend, but two steps outside of her office she was confronted with a sight she never expected to see. Because there, in all his glory, and with that look of hope still glinting in his ocean blue eyes despite all that had happened this morning, was Killian. Her Killian.

Time seemed to freeze for a second as Emma took him in, and the impact of seeing him was just as strong now as the first time they met. This sensation that he was filling her very soul with something akin to magic had been here for years, and today it was all the stronger thanks to what had transpired last night. It took a moment for Emma to look beyond his normal brilliance though. When she took in details she noticed that he was out of breath, his chest straining a bit more than usual. He looked as if he’d run here, and Emma was immediately worried.

“Killian are you okay?” she asked, walking towards him and completely forgetting about the distance she’d wanted when she left his place this morning. “Jesus, did you run here?”

“Aye, love. Running seemed the best option since I had to get to you as quickly as possible.”

Emma felt her cheeks flush with both pleasure and a little bit of embarrassment. They were standing in the main foyer of the library in full view of so many people, but Killian walked up to her, his hands coming to hold her in his embrace and the rest of it melted away. When he looked at her like this – like she was the answer to his every prayer and hope – there simply wasn’t space for the rest of the world.

“Did you just wake up?” Emma asked, thinking that would be crazy. Killian never slept in. Hell, he’d already slept too long by his standards when she snuck out this morning. It was past eleven now. Surely he’d been awake. 

“No, Emma. There were a few things that needed taking care of first, but believe me, I’ve done it all as quickly as I could.”

“I do, believe you I mean,” Emma said, her eyes filling with tears as she forced herself to continue speaking. “I can’t believe you came to get me. Aren’t you angry?”

“Never, love. What we shared last night…” Killian’s reminder of their evening together set Emma’s heart beating faster and she felt herself flush a deeper shade of red. That only seemed to draw Killian in closer, and his hand came up to cup her face, the brush of his fingertips on her skin bringing a peace and desire all rolled into one. He looked only seconds away from kissing her, but instead he continued on, telling her exactly what she most wanted to hear. “It’s an overwhelming thing, Emma. To feel so much so suddenly – I knew you’d be afraid come morning. I only wish I’d woken first to remind you that there’s nothing to fear. Not from me.”

Emma knew he was right but her words were clogged in the back of her throat. This attraction between them was so heady and loomed so large she couldn’t make sense of it at all. There was so much she wanted to say – so much that needed saying – but Killian could see that, and instead of letting her flounder he smiled that charmingly boyish grin of his. A man so sexy shouldn’t be allowed this kind of look, but her Killian was a cut above the rest. 

“I know it’s an awful lot to ask, Swan, but do you trust me?”

“Yes,” Emma whispered and Killian’s smile grew in confidence. He looked about to scoop her into his arms, and a flash of the same look that came before his kisses devoured her last night appeared across his face. But he held back, instead moving back towards the door, keeping her hand in his, and guiding her out of the library. Emma had no idea where he was going, but she would follow him anywhere. Still it surprised her when their destination ended up being so close: in fact, it was just next door.

“Killian?” 

The questioning in Emma’s voice as they made their way up the walkway of the gorgeous Victorian style house beside the library was undeniable. She was shocked that they were coming here since no one had been in here in ages, not since she’d first started volunteering at the library years ago. The home, while gorgeous and timeless with its ivory colored exterior, was a little worse for wear thanks to the owners not living there anymore. At one time it was a grand estate, built for one of Boston’s richest families, but the love this home deserved had been missing for a while, and in her heart Emma had always dreamed that she might be the one to bring that love back.

In those dreams of love and light and building a home, there was also a partner in that adventure, and if she were honest with herself, Emma would admit that there had never been any option but Killian for the role of leading man. It was always him, even though she’d never spoken that wish aloud. Yet now here they were, and Emma had a growing suspicion that perhaps she hadn’t kept her adoration of this house quite as secret as she believed she had. By the time they stopped at the front door and Killian turned to face her, Emma knew that he had guessed her secret and she waited with bated breath to see what he had to say about it. 

“When I woke this morning and you were gone, my first instinct was to find you immediately, love. Being away from you… well let’s just say it’s not an option, Emma. I love you too much to let you go. I knew that from the start, and nothing has changed that.” 

Emma was speechless. Had he just said he loved her? He said love right? As in L-O-V-E, marriage, and kids, and the happily ever after love? God, please let that be what he’d said!

“But I also have known from the very beginning that you are a woman who needs proof. Life has taught you to be cautious, and I understand that, Emma. I love you for all you’ve overcome, for every trial you met and vanquished. You are a marvel, and you deserve nothing less than everything you’ve always wanted.” 

Killian pulled something from his pocket with his free hand and Emma watched in amazement as he offered it to her. It was a single key hanging on a chain that held an anchor. It was silver in color, glinting in the light, and when she looked at it closely Emma saw her initials engraved in it and her heart clenched in the best possible way.

“Killian…?” Emma couldn’t fathom what was happening, and she found herself at a loss for words. She glanced back up at Killian as she accepted the key and his look of encouragement was so pure she couldn’t help but give a soft smile back. 

“Go on, love. Don’t you want to see inside?”

Emma nodded, her hand a bit shaky as she entered the key into the lock at the door. In a few seconds she’d handled the latch and revealed the interior, but she was so distracted by the hugeness of this moment that she failed to see the work he’d done inside of here. When her eyes fell upon the entryway, and she saw that this old place had not only been fully cleaned up and already partially restored, but filled with the kinds of wild flowers that she loved, Emma gasped. How was this possible? Surely he couldn’t have done this all in one morning, could he? 

“No, Swan, this hasn’t been the work of one day alone. I found the owners a few months back.”

“Months?!” Emma asked. “You’ve been planning this for… I don’t understand.”

“Well it’s not that complicated really. See there’s this woman, this impossibly gorgeous miraculous woman,” Killian said, pulling her close again and bringing her to stand in the spot that had quickly become her favorite; the one where she was tucked in at his chest. “I’ve been in love with her since the day we met, and, having found myself feeling trapped into only a friendship, I thought the best way out would be a grand gesture.” 

“You didn’t need to do all of this,” Emma said abruptly and Killian looked a bit concerned until she blurted out some more of her confession. “Because I already love you too, Killian. I love you. I always have. Always.”

Emma was barely able to get the words out and Killian’s lips were on hers, consuming her and breathing life and love and magic back into her all over again. It was instant, the consuming attraction that made her want to forget everything else and just cling to him for the foreseeable future, but right at the moment when Emma would have pushed for more, Killian tore his lips away, his forehead resting against her as he caught his breath and gave her even more of those impossibly perfect words of his. 

“The house is yours, Emma. In case that wasn’t clear before.”

“Mine?” Emma asked, curiously. “I don’t know if I love that idea.”

“You don’t?” Killian asked, clearly thrown for a loop, and Emma had to bite back a smile, knowing she was teasing him, but also knowing in a moment he’d be back to smiling at her in that was she loved so much.

“No. Now if it were _ours_ , that’s the kind of idea I could get behind.” As soon as Emma said the words, Killian’s grin returned and the lilt of his accent became just a little more pronounced with the cocky charm he couldn’t help but spew.

“I was hoping you might say that, love,” he replied, and then he shocked her all over again by getting down on one knee right there in the middle of the home that would be theirs, and showing her a ring that was big and beautiful and glinting from the sunlight streaming through the windows. “So I came prepared. Emma Swan -,”

“Will you marry me?” Emma asked, again totally throwing off the rhythm, but prompting Killian to laugh fully as he nodded. 

“Aye, love. I’m more than willing to let you make an honest man of me. But please don’t deny me a proposal. I’ve been imagining how it would go for some time now.”

“Okay,” Emma said, nearly overflowing with happiness. “Go on then.”

“Emma Swan, love of my life, woman of my dreams, will you please make me the happiest of men and marry me.”

“Yes.”

With that promise, Killian rose to his feet, slipped the ring on her finger, and swept Emma up into his arms in the blink of an eye. She laughed in the face of his excitement, but she was just as eager to make up for all the lost time that came from keeping their feelings a secret. And luckily for them, such secrets were gone now. In the end, the two were able to take that long held friendship and build it into a lifetime of love. They had the best of both worlds, for they were partners and lovers, friends and soul mates. In truth, they were a truly perfect pair, and when such a love exists, it’s only normal for things to turn out happily ever after.

…………..

_Sorry if it's hard to catch my vibe, mmm_

_I need a lover to trust, tell me you're on my side_

_Are you down for the ride?_

_It's not easy for someone to catch my eye_

_But I've been waitin' for you for my whole damn life_

_For my whole lifetime_

_Don't be afraid to tell me if you ain't with it (you ain't with it)_

_I see you're focused, yeah you're so independent (independent)_

_It's hard for me to open up, I'll admit it (I'll admit it)_

_You've got some shit to say and I'm here to listen_

_So baby, tell me where your love lies_

_Waste the day and spend the night_

_Underneath the sunrise_

_Show me where your love lies_

_I've been so into your mystery_

_Is it because of our history?_

_Are you into me?_

_When it feels so good, but it's bad for you_

_Can't say I don't want it 'cause I know I do_

_Come on over, I need your company_

_Cravin' that synergy_

_Don't be afraid to tell me if you ain't with it (you ain't with it)_

_I see you're focused, yeah, you're so independent (independent)_

_It's hard for me to open up, I'll admit it (I'll admit it)_

_You've got some shit to say and I'm here to listen_

_So baby, tell me where your love lies_

_Waste the day and spend the night_

_Underneath the sunrise_

_Show me where your love lies_

_Tell me where your love lies_

_Waste the day and spend the night_

_Underneath the sunrise_

_Show me where your love lies_

_If you're down, don't hide it_

_Feelin' me, you don't gotta deny it_

_Baby you gon' make me overnight it_

_Tell me, are you down?_

_If you're down, don't hide it (yeah)_

_Feelin' me, you don't gotta deny it (yeah)_

_Baby you gon' make me overnight it_

_Tell me, are you down? (Tell me)_

_Tell me where your love lies (tell me where your love lies)_

_Waste the day and spend the night (waste the day, spend the night)_

_Underneath the sunrise (underneath the sunrise)_

_Show me where your love lies (tell me where your love lies)_

_Tell me where your love lies (show me where your love lies)_

_Waste the day and spend the night (yeah, yeah)_

_Underneath the sunrise (ooh)_

_Show me where your love lies_

**_Post-Note: It feels like a mini miracle that this chapter has been written guys (and to be fair it’s over the top, short, and more than a little cutesy/cheesy), mostly because I didn’t manage to finish it before school started and actually had to take time out of a completely packed schedule to finish it up this week. That being said, this kind of quick, fluff-filled love fest is exactly the remedy I need for school and I hope it’s been enjoyable for you guys too. It’s been a long time since I added to the mixtape, but I’m hoping once the semester ends I can start posting a bit more regularly. TBD if that’s going to actually happen. Anyway, thanks to all of you for reading and I hope you have a great rest of your weekend!!_ **


End file.
